Process for making helical accordion packing rings



April 27, 1937. H. T. WHEELER 2,078549 PROCESS FOR MAKING HELICAL' ACCORDION PACKING RINGS Original Filed April 19, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet l I J TOR.

BY MAM A TTORNEYS.

H. T. WHEELER 2,078,549

PROCESS FOR MAKING HELICAL ACCORDION PACKING RINGS A ril 27, 1937.

Original Filed April 19, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gyjzg 0 M ATTORNEYS;

Patented Apr. 27, 1937 "PATENT OFFICE PnocEss non MAKING new. moon- DION memo RINGS Harley '1. Wheeler, Dallas, Tex.

Original application April 19, 1932, Serial No. 606,115. Divided and this application October 13, 1933, Serial No. 693,452 I 13' Claims.

My invention relates to a process of manufacture of an accordion-shaped packing ring.

It is anobject of the invention to provide a complete set of packing capable of being made of one piece of material.

Another object is to provide a one-piece packing member having no joints or laps between any of the laminations throughout the assembly, re-

. gardless of the length of the packing member.

It is a further object to provide a process of constructing packing which is adaptable for making any shape of packing ring.

It is a further object to provide a packing member for stufling-boxes and the like which may be produced rapidly and at a very low cost.

Another object is to provide a process of making packing of uniform density.

A further object is to provide a method of making packing which will result in a packing member having continuous folds which are mechanically strong and adapted to build up local saturation which operates automatically to increase the packing efiect independent of manual adjustment.

With the foregoing objects and advantages in view, other factors of construction will now be disclosed, accompanied by the drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 shows the cross-section of a gate valve bonnet showing the use of the packing made according to this invention.

Figs. 2 and 2a show side and end views respectively of a commercial woven tubular section of material for making this accordion.

Figs. 3 and 3a show end and side views respectively of a fabricated tubular section of material formed on the bias. o Fig. 4 shows a wrap of sheet material'superimposed on a tube, making a composite tubular section.

Fig. 5 shows an outline of the accordion folds to be made.

Fig. 6 shows a partial cross-section of the man- 'drel used to form the helical accordion.

Fig. 7 shows the method of forming the helical accordion by feeding a section of tubing onto the mandrel f- 1 Fig.8 shows the method of tam'pingthe helical accordion into a radial massformation. r

. Fig.;9'sh ows the method of changing the radial s'oaaccoraipn into'a conical shape. I

Fig. 10 shows the method of compressing the i accordion to a conical ring shape of deflnitedig mensions. Y

' Fig. 11 indicates some of the ring shapeswhich 55 may beproduced.

Fig. 12 shows a composite tubular section for controlling density, or porosity of porous materials.

- This application is a division of my prior application filed April 19, 1932, Serial No. 606,115. 5 One of the largest uses of packing is on gate valve stems, the majority of which are non-rising, or rotatable types. The ideal packing for the purpose is a one-piece set, such as is herein described. Another large use is on plunger pumps. 10 as the plunger may be removed for insertion of the one-piece set. There are many other uses for this type of accordion packing.

Referring now to Fig. 1, the cross-section of the bonnet of a gate valve, the stufflng-box is 15 bored in the housing I. The valve stem 2 extends through the housing I and has a boss 6 fitting into the housing. The packing gland 3 is held in place by bolts 4, 4, attached to the housing by bugs not shown, and adjusts the one-piece accordion 6 in 20 place to hold pressure in the valve chamber.

The accordion packing 6 is a great improvement on all other types of strip wound rings cemented or vulcanized together; braid packing cut and formed into rings, and for some. purposes 25 better than the radial lappen accordion packing disclosed in my application relating to saturation by syntheses, Serial No; 600,246. As pressure penetrates through the laminations of the packing 6, a small drop of pressure occurs across each 30 lamination causing the conical surfaces to contact with the stem 2. In most packing construcpressure to cause reaction, the plaits expand both lengthwise and between the wall and the rod surfaces.v 45

. Also, inasmuch as the assembly is saturated with the fluidmedium under pressure the laminations are retarding agents sensitively changing position with the variation of pressure. The accordion is the tighest form of packing yet devised "at either high or-low pressure, or duringthe variation of pressure or in cases of misalign- .ment.

The accordion as herein described necessarily has a tubular base. Fig. 2 and Fig. 211 show a I an assembly of B5 degree conical laminations, the

woven tube of suitable material having a thin wall as indicated by the dotted lines. The w of this commercial tubing i may be made to run on the bias as shown at lb, or it may be made running lengthwise and being crossed at right angles by the woof, a network substantially as shown by la. causes the density of the accordion to be greatest at the outer portions, as will be elsewhere shown. Fig. 3 and Fig. 3a indicate how a sheet of porous or absorbent material 81, which may be woven longitudinally as shown at 8b or may be cut on the bias as shown by the network at 80, is wound spirally onto a mandrel and made into a lapped tube, with overlaps as at c and d being held by a suitable cement. The result of a tube so formed on the bias gives a uniform density of the completed accordiomas will be explained. Fig. 4 is an example of a composite tube, the inner section it being a commercial woven tube similar to that of Fig. 2, on which is formed a spiral tube 9 similar to that of Fig. 3 with a lap e. A combination is thereby secured having a combination of two networks substantially as shown. As the diameter of the rod is increased requiring deeper accordion grooves, other layers of tubing may be added as shown at 9a.

Returning now to Fig. l, the packing set S is slope length a. I) being the required length of one leg of the accordion to be formed. In Fig. 5 is an outline of this accordion opened up the length a. b being made equal to a b Fig. 1. The angle a: used for the primary formation is governed by the length a b' 'in relation to the diameter of the stem 2, the curvature to which the material will be subjected and its porosity. A mandrel is used for forming the accordion and an example is shown in Fig. 6. A mandrel ii is attached to a driving head i2 by the screws i3, it. The surface of the mandrel ii is formed into a helix similar to a V-thread, the included angle a: and the length of the slope a" b being the same as the values decided upon in Fig. 5. A groove Hg is made at the left hand portion of the helix. The first step in forming my one-piece accordion is shown by Fig. '7 the helically ridged mandrel ll being considered in place on a driving head for rotation as shown by the arrow. The woven tube i, as fabricated according to Fig. 2, is pulled over the threaded portion of the mandrel ii and is fixed to the latter by a wire it tightened around the groove llg provided. Tension in the wire it is supplied by passing it through the clamps it, it the latter held together and adjusted-by the screws if, it.

The mandrel ii is turned in a direction so that the wire i l-will pull the porous flexible tube i into the grooves gradually as the wire is pulled into the groove with the tube. As one end of the wire it is fixed to the mandrel i i at the groove 'iib each, groove formed in the tube i as it is formed is held in place by the wire it and the helical shape is retained after the winding is completed. The operation pulls the warp into the v-shape and increases the density, but the woof is pulled apart in the troughs by the crushing.

After an accordion of suflicient length is obtained the wire it is removed and the helical fabrication screwed off the mandrel i l. Turning now to Fig. 8, the housing it'is bored to the size -box of Fig. l, which isappr i.

mately the outside diameter of the accordion asit is formed in Fig. 7. The annular space between the internal boss of the housing is made equal to distance a. b of Fig. 5, the slope of the grooves. Therefore, when the accordion is placed in the housing It and tamped with the collar I9 the folds occupy the annular space substantially as shown. No more pressure is applied during this operation than is necessary to bring the folds parallel.

My process of generating special shapes in the accordion must take into account a time lapse for making the transformation. For example, if the form made in Fig. 8 is directly transferred to the finishing mold of Fig. 10 and pressure applied, the conical laminations will be irregulaa 1y formed and the folds will roll unevenly on each other. To avoid the foregoing, the accordion l on being removed from housing it is placed in a housing 28 of the same outside diameter. The mandrel it has two diameters, the larger being that of the final or stem diameter and the smaller that of the internal boss of housing it,

Fig. 8. A tapered surface Joins the two specified diameters. The housing 2i, containing the accordion i is driven down over the mandrel it, the tapered section gradually drawin and changing the folds into conical shape, the transformation being completed when the larger diameter passes through the last lamination.

The accordion l is now removed from the housing 28 and inserted in the mold 22, Fig. 10, having the bore of the stufling-box of Fig. 1 and the stem being that of the stem 2 of the same figure. The punch 23 is forced against the fabric bringing the laminations to the desired angle and into parallelism and in close contact. It is a property of the accordion type of packing when properly pressed into final shape, that the folds will roll on each other sufliciently to make an exact fit against the confining walls. The completed packing set I (6) is now removed from the mold 2t and may be inserted in the stuifing-box of Fig. i.

The conical accordion example as now completed is a 45 degree conical base. It should be obvious that many other shapes may be produced in like manner. Fig. 11 shows a series of shapes, each section being that portion of the forming mold 22 of Fig. 10, between the section line AA and the arrow (10). A radial accordion, squareended is shown by a, the cupped formation by b and c is the V-shaped. My special shapes are the concave cone d, the convex-con le, the concave-convex f and the frusto-cone g. The procedure of forming any of these shapes'a to g inclusive is slar to the steps outlined in Figs. 9

. and 10 after proper allowances are made in the tools necessary for formation.

A further application of the accordion process of constructing packing is shown in Fig. 12, the formation of a composite tube of varying densities. Portions m and n are of coarse material,

for example, 9 and p of medium texture, while layers 1' and q are fine spun. The sections are overlapped substantially as shown and cemented together.

Returning now to Fig. '7, the accordion formation to tube 5. of the commercial tubing of Fig. 2,

changeably for piston rings or stufling-box types.

A composite material of Fig. 4 produces a well averaged structure and is useful for large diameters. When the, composite structure of Fig. 12 is formed into an accordion packing the porosity is graduated in a lengthwise direction. Two or more sections may be used in forming the tubular assembly as shown by the dotted wrap it, and any number of density sections lengthwise as shown. It should be obvious that forming ofkthe helical accordion as herein described is a process of wide adaptation. Packing sets and rings for many uses made in various shapes and designs may be produced and such accomplishments as are thus possibleare intended" to be included under this invention and. defined by the appended claims.

What 'is claimed is: 1. A method of forming packing comprising; placing a cylindrical tube of flexible packing material upon' a mandrel corrugated transversely, winding a flexible line about said mandrel to force the walls of said tube into the corrugations of said mandrel and produce thereon approximately parallel laminations, removing said tube from said mandrel, and compressing'said tube longitudinally to bring the adjacent sides of said laminationsinto close contact with each other.

4 2. The method of forming a packing set for stufling boxes and the like comprising forming a cylindrical tube of flexible material, corrugating said tube transversely to form laminations 40 therein, and compressing said tube longitudinally therein, compressing said tube into said grooves by winding a funicular member about said mandrel, removing said member, unscrewing said grooved tube from said mandrel, and then compressing said tube longitudinally to form accordion laminations therein.

5. A method of making packing comprising forminga tube of flexible material, placing the same upon a mandrel having a helical groove therein, compressing saidtube into said grooves by winding a funicular member about said mandrel, removingsaid member, removing said tube from said mandrel, compressing said tube longitudinally to form transverse laminations therein, and then forcing the adjacent laminations into frusto-conical shape. g

6. A method of forming a set of packing to flt a stuffing box and the like comprising forming a tube of flexibile material, corrugating said tube transversely by forming a helical groove therein and compressing said tube longitudinally.

' 7. A method of forming a set of packing to fit a stuffing box and the like comprising forming a tube of flexible material, corrugating said tube transversely by compressing the wall of said tube into a helically formed groove, forcing the sides of adjacent laminations into close contact with each other, and then enlarging the inner diameter of said laminations to form frusto-conical shaped folds.

9. A method of forming a porous pacldng member comprising forming, a cylindrical tube of fabric, forming transverse laminations in said tube, compressing said tube longitudinally to axis of said tube.

10: A method of forming packing including constructing a tube of fabric material with a plurality of layers of said fabric, forming regularly arranged transverse laminations in said tube and compressing said tube longitudinally to force the adjacent walls of said lamination into close contact with each other. i

11. A method of forming packing including constructing a tube of fabric material with a plurality of layers of said fabric, forming regularly arranged transverse laminations in said tube and compressing said tube longitudinally to force the adjacent walls of said lamination into closecontact with each other and then inclining said laminations relative to the axis of said tube. 12. A method of forming packing including winging a strip of fabric-material helically to pro-.

duce a tube of said fabric material. forcing the wall of said tube into uniform transverse laminations, and compressing said laminations iongitudinally in the manner described.

13. A method of forming packing including ,forming a continuous tube of woven material,

winding a helical strip of similar material upon said tube, forcing the wall of said tube into uniform transverse laminations, and compressing said laminations longitudinally in the manner described. p

T. WHEELER. 

